“Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, ‘Woe to those who call evil good,’ but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor’s possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and set us free. Amen!”
― Billy Graham

Yeah.
The moment you read in the paper that Billy Graham is dead, you’ll know that he’s more alive than he’s ever been before.
And I’m in heaven. Fine.
We’ve become Spectators.
We watch the events happening all around the world and it seems that it’s going to happen to everybody else, but it won’t happen to you.
Most people think that about death.
They say, well the other fella is gonna die, but I I’m not gonna die.
It’s gonna happen to somebody else.
We live as though we’re going to live forever.
You’ve been to a funeral for a few moments.
You are solemn. You’re thoughtful that night you go back, you go to bed, you think about it, you try to put it out of your mind.
You don’t want to think about it.
And yet the Bible says it’s appointed unto man wants to die.
That is the hearse carrying the body of the reverend Billy Graham in that simple casket built by prisoners in Louisiana.
Just something the man you want me to build his cap.
One of these days, they’re going to be taking me out to the cemetery.
They’ll be saying some words over me? Is that the end?
Is it all over here is the question if a man die, shall he live again?
Reverend Billy Gray, one of the most inspirational spiritual leaders of the 20th century.
He was a giant. You won’t see his likes again.
I want us to look at the cross tonight.
He’s met and talked and preached to kings, queens and heads of state around the globe.
I’m just an ordinary messenger of the kingdom of God.
The humble farmer’s son who helped change the world is a spiritual gift to all of us.
Got that locked down.
Here you go. Yeah.
You know, as I look back over my life, it’s full of surprises.
I never thought I would become friends with people in different countries all over the world.
I see how God’s hand got it, man.
What a wonderful and glorious. When I began preaching many years ago, it was not with any thoughts that I’d be preaching to large audiences come to God has done this.
Our country is in great need of a spiritual awakening.
Well, there have been times that I’ve wept as I’ve gone from city to city and I’ve seen how far people have wandered from God of all the things that I’ve seen and heard.
There’s only one message that can change people’s lives and hearts.
There is a way, if you come by the way of the cross, I want to tell people about the meaning of the cross, not the cross that hangs on a wall or around someone’s neck.
We receive our freedom, purchased by the, the, the cross of Christ.
The great love of God and blood stained His with a rugged cross.
Real purpose for coming was I know that many will react to this message, but it is the truth.
And with all my heart, I want to leave you with the truth.
God says, I love you, I love you.
I love you with an everlasting love that He loves you, willing to forgive you of all your sins.
I look out across an audience when I stand up to preach.
And I think of all the people with their different backgrounds and their various needs.
And I know that they are objects of God’s love to the point that he gave his son, his only son to die up on her cross.
And the cross was the most terrible form of execution by the Romans for criminals.
And Jesus endured all that in our place because of our sins.
We deserved the cross, we deserve hell, we deserve judgment and all that.
That means I know that there are many people that dispute that people don’t want to hear that they are sinners to many people.
It’s an off fence. The cross is offensive because it directly confronts the evils which dominate so much of this world.
You see the Bible teaches that all of us are wrong.
We’ve all gone astray. We’ve, everyone turned to his own way and when we turn to our own way, we go astray from God’s way.
And that includes the whole human race. And that’s why the world is in such terrible danger right now.
It’s not dangerous so much because we have atomic bombs.
It’s dangerous because of the human hearts back of the bombs filled with envy and hate and strife and greed and lust and all the other things that could pull the trigger.
Now, these things about the cross of Christ, being able to save people and find forgiveness of sin and find eternal life at the foot of the cross.
Sounds foolish to modern ears. The Bible says that the natural man receive not the things of the spirit of God for their foolishness under him.
Neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned.
You say your mind was affected by sin. Our minds have been distorted.
All of us are sinners. We’ve turned our back on God.
And that’s a very dangerous thing for us as individuals.
Sin is a disease in the human heart.
It affects the mind and the will and the emotions.
Every part of our being is affected by this disease.
How can we break this bondage? How can we be set free?
We’re under condemnation. We’re already condemned. We’re on death row right now.
All of us and God through the cross is saying to you, I’ll pardon you.
I give you a party. I’ll forget your sins.
I’ll never hold you accountable for your sin again.
You can enter the Kingdom of God and have eternal life.
But first, we’ve got to settle the score with God.
And that’s what Christ did on the cross. He made atonement.
He reconciled us to God on that cross.
God, his leg, on Jesus, our sins.
They not only put nails in his hands, but before that, they discouraged him, a Roman scourge was a terrible thing.
They took whips and pellets on those whips and beat a person almost to death.
And then they took that cross and made him carry the cross, which was in his weakened condition was almost impossible.
But he carried that cross took place outside of Jerusalem.
And then they put nails in his hands. But that was not the real suffering.
The real suffering is when he said, my God, why stop for me in that terrible moment.
He and God, the father, we’re separated.
He shed his blood and the shedding of that blood carries with it.
God’s very life.
The blood is the meeting place between God and man and the Bible says, without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness and that’s what Christ was doing on the cross.
He was making atonement for our sins. He became sin.
Think of him, Jesus Christ, the greatest person that ever lived, the holiest person that ever lived the son of the living God became sin.
He had never known sin and he became guilty at that moment of adultery, he became guilty of lying, of idolatry.
He became guilty of every ugly, dirty thing you can think of because it was your sins poured out on him.
Jesus took it on the cross and shed his blood for us and he was shedding his blood.
Now, when you take the blood out, that means you’re giving your life. And that’s what it means.
It means the life of Christ, the cross and the resurrection of Christ offers forgiveness of sin, offers a whole new life and offers you eternal life.
If you come to the cross by repentance and faith, there is no other way of salvation except through the cross of Christ.
Jesus said, I’m the way, the truth and the life.
No man coming to the Father.
But by me, the only way to the father, father, God is through his son Jesus Christ.
And why Jesus, he’s the only one that was born into this world without sin.
But more than that, he was a righteous one.
And when you come to Him, you’re clothed in his righteousness.
God no longer sees your sin, you no longer see your own heart. He sees Jesus.
Now, I don’t understand all about it.
There are many things about the cross and about salvation that I do not understand.
And I’m not told that I have to understand it all. I’m told that I’m to believe.
And that word believe means commit, I commit my life totally to him.
Jesus Christ from the cross says, I will save you.
I will forgive you. I will change you. I’ll make you a new person.
If you come to the cross by repentance and faith come to Christ, come to Christ, come to Christ.
When you come to Christ, you come by the way of repentance, repent means to change, to change your way of living and turn from your sins and turn to Jesus Christ and sit by my center.
I need forgiveness. And I know that you’re the only one that can change me.
A lot of people will say, well, I don’t really want a change in my life.
Little scripture teaches without that change, that God demands, we’ll never get to heaven.
But for me, I was a member of our church, but I had really come to Christ from the very beginning.
I was read in a Christian atmosphere. My father and mother, both were Christians.
By the time I was a teenager, I became an evangelist style town.
I remember I got under such conviction and one night they gave the invitation to receive Christ and are reluctant.
They went, but I really meant business with the Lord.
I came just as I was with all my sins, all my failures, and the Lord received me and changed me that has transformed me till this day.
I’ve never been the same.
I found during a lot of years of my life when I’ve had sicknesses and been in the hospital and so forth.
There’s a piece that just resides there and stays there that I cannot explain.
Everybody could have that same peace. If they received Christ as their savior.
I know I’m going to heaven.
I’m looking forward to it with great anticipation because of what Jesus did on that cross.
He died for us. But he was raised by God.
If Christ is alive, there is hope in the world.
Yes, Jesus Christ is alive, he rose from the dead.
And that day, that Easter Sunday morning, that first Easter when Mary and Mary Magdalene and Salo went to the grave expecting to anoint a dead body.
They saw the angel sitting there and they said, where is Jesus?
The angel said he is not here. He is risen. I submit to you tonight.
That, that’s the greatest news the world has ever heard. He is not here.
He has conquered the grave, he’s alive.
And the whole early church went up and down the country preaching the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
And you’ll notice that when the disciples went out after the cross and the resurrection, it says they went out preaching that Jesus was alive and that because he lives, we too are going to live some day in that same resurrection doorway.
And because of the hope we have in Jesus, we can all be in heaven some day forever.
But first, there must be a decision here and now in this life to be him.
I’m asking you to put your trust in Christ.
I’m going to ask you to pray this prayer sentence by sentence after me, dear heavenly father.
I know that I’m a sinner and I ask for your forgiveness.
I believe you’ve died for my sins and rose from the dead.
I turn from my sins. I repent of my sins.
I invite you to come into my heart and life.
I want to trust and follow you as my Lord and Savior in Jesus name.
Amen. He’s alive.
I have given my life not to a dead Christ but to a living Christ.
I know where I’ve come from. I know why I’m here.
I know where I’m going to you guilty.
I’m guilty. Was all that I could say mercy.
You’re mercy crashing and all my sin was, was to me.
It took the and every with everything.
Don’t wait smart.
Why?
And the snow you oh you me um And all my sins.
It’s in in I to with yes.
Mhm.
Know the focus of Billy Graham’s message in ministry was the cross of Christ.
His book. What happened at the cross explores the true meaning of this extraordinary event.
As a thank you for your support. We’ll send you this powerful book. Call 877567, 89 89.
Or go to Billy Graham dot org slash book for over 60 years.
Billy Graham shared the good news of the cross and resurrection.
And today that work continues partner with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in our ongoing mission to proclaim the gospel through every means available.
Internet, evangelism allows us to reach the world with the good news 24 hours a day.
Our rapid response chaplains offer hope to the hurting during times of tragedy.
And we continue to share God’s love through Franklin Graham festivals.
And will Graham celebrations join us in taking the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Visit, Billy Graham dot org slash book or call 877567 89 89.
As a thank you, we’ll send you what happened at the cross by Billy Graham call or log on today.
You’re invited on a journey of discovery at the Billy Graham Library.
Retrace Billy Graham’s path from humble farm boy to international ambassador of God’s Love tour.
The restored Graham family home place browse Ruth’s at a bookstore and have a meal at the dairy bar.
Enjoy special exhibits, events and seasonal activities for the whole of family admission is free.
So come walk this journey of discovery at the Billy Graham Library.
Millions of people are searching for answers to the crushing problems and fears that they face today.
That ought to give us a new urgency to declare the one answer.
My father, his whole ministry. He never got sidetracked.
He stayed focused on what God had called him to do. Jesus said, follow me, follow me.
There’s a generation now that doesn’t know Billy Graham that doesn’t know Jesus Christ doesn’t know anything about God.
We see a spiritual need here at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. We’re called to meet it.
The Bill Graham archive and research center will be a facility that will hold all of my father’s correspondence and records.
It will be a state of the art facility.
It’s going to be two story 34,000 square feet of the audio and visual and photography, records, papers, everything about this 70-year plus ministry.
We’re bringing all that together in Charlotte.
We feel that this is so important for future generations to have this material where people can study what God did to Billy Graham and how God did it.
I’m sure Mr Graham had no idea that he would develop such a treasure trove of materials.
First of all of the manuscripts that he carried into the pulpit, probably the most valuable piece of the archives are those sermon notes that reflect that incredible anointed preaching ministry right next door is the Billy Graham library.
What’s so neat about the archive center being right beside the library is that you get not just the research side but the practicality side of it.
So when people come to study his life, they can go to the library and see his life and how God brought a group of men and women around him to reach millions and millions of people.
For Jesus. The ultimate impact of the Billy Graham archive center linked to the library is to encourage a younger generation to the task of proclamation evangelism.
And that’s what I hope that this archive center will do that.
It will call young men and women to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ wherever they go.
And that’s what’s exciting to see if this center can be a place that spurs them on and gives them an inspiration for fulfilling the great commission in their day.
Then it’s worth every dollar that’s raised every moment of work that it takes to bring it together so that someone else can learn to do the work of evangelism.